Genuine taste of Italy you could enjoy for a month of sundaes
Your spy went to one of Derby’s favourite lunchtime spots to sample the delights on offer there...
THE Grand Café Caruso has been part of the furniture of Derby’s shopping centre since 1994 and has a perfect score on TripAdvisor but they are not always to be trusted. The Derby institution, in Burrows Walk just inside Derbion, is a local favourite specialising in a hybrid of Italian and British cuisine.
It is the sister site of Café Caruso Boutique, also located in Derbion, which was founded by Italian brothers, Marcello and Tony Parretta.
With such a reputation, the Derby Telegraph had to make sure that everything was up to scratch and pop in for a spot of lunch.
The welcome
When entering, your spy was hit with a wash of nostalgia of childhood lunches with the grandparents after an exciting day out in town.
The timeless decor and warm welcome from staff immediately put the spy at ease as they entered, just before the lunchtime rush.
It was clear straight away that the staff at Caruso’s know their clientele well with the waiter knowing a regular in the queue.
The food
Your spy could not go to an Italianowned café without sampling some classic Italian ingredients.
That’s why they went with a tomato, mozzarella and basil baguette with a side salad and a caffe latte to wash it down.
The latte was the first to arrive, and was made with Italian Lavazza coffee. Although maybe slightly too strong for this spy’s taste, it was perfectly pleasant all the same.
Next was the baguette and the side salad as well as a bonus bag of ready salted crisps which was a very nice surprise.
Overall, the presentation of the meal was fine although the side salad was a little swamped by a large serving dish. The ingredients in the baguette were clearly fresh and the spy could not wait to tuck in.
The baguette was the perfect balance of crisp on the outside but soft on the inside and the proportion of mozzarella, tomato and basil was spot on.
The salad was good but if your spy was being a little picky, would have benefited from a bit of salad dressing. This being said, they couldn’t really complain for the reasonable price.
The bill
Tomato, mozzarella and basil baguette and a bag of crisps Regular coffee latte
Side salad
Total
The verdict
£4.50 £2.45 £1.95 £8.90
In this spy’s opinion, The Grand Café Caruso lives up to its name as one of Derby’s best spots for a bite to eat.
There are very few places where you will find a such a fresh, high-quality lunch at such a low price point.
It is definitely worth a visit if you have failed to do so for the last 27 years.